The present invention relates generally to devices for dispensing a scent for use when hunting animals. More specifically, the present invention relates to a scent dispensing device mounted to an archery bow, additionally acting as a stabilizer to resist the torque and dampen the vibration and shock imparted to the bow when an arrow is released. The present invention may also serve as a wind direction detector upon release of the atomized fluid.
The use of scents by hunters to increase their chances of hunting success is well known. Various scents have been used to attract game and to mask the scent of the hunter so that the hunted animal is not alerted to the presence of the hunter and is instead drawn towards the hunter. The particular choice of scent, of course, depends upon the type of animal being hunted and may include, among others, musk, deer urine, raccoon urine, fox urine, acorn scent, pine scent, and skunk scent.
Prior forms of scent dispensers comprise a pad, sponge, wick, or like element that is treated or saturated with a liquid scent, and rely passively on evaporation and diffusion to disperse the scent into the air. This saturated pad type of scent dispenser is exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 5,746,019 [Fisher] and U.S. Pat. No. 6,158,668 [Burgeson]. A disadvantage of this type of scent dispenser is that the rate of scent dispersal cannot be controlled when the device is in use. Some devices include the ability to retract the saturated pad into a sealed container to prevent the evaporation and dispersion of the scent, or to cover the openings in the container through which the scent is dispersed. However, none of the prior art devices enables the scent to be dispersed more rapidly than is provided for by the natural evaporation of the liquid scent and diffusion of the vaporized scent, based on the environmental conditions, i.e., current outdoor temperature, wind, and humidity conditions.
Another disadvantage of the saturated pad type of scent dispenser is that the scent may not be readily changed in the field. Since a used saturated pad will retain some residual scent, changing scents requires the changing of saturated pads, which exposes the hunter to the risk of coming into contact with the liquid scent, so that the hunter""s skin and clothing may become contaminated with an undesirable scent. Additionally, retention of residual scent means that used saturated pads must be either disposed of, which can be wasteful, or used for the same scent, which may require the hunter to keep a set of saturated pads with one for each different scent used. Yet another disadvantage of this type of scent dispenser is that the scent dispenser is often a separate device that the hunter must transport into a remote hunting location, along with all of the other hunting equipment and paraphernalia that a hunter may already need to transport.
Various prior devices include scent dispensers in combination with other functions, in order to limit the number of separate devices a hunter must transport. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,156,496 [Stinson] teaches a saturated pad type scent dispenser incorporated into an archery bow mounted arrow quiver, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,245,612 [Finlay] teaches a saturated pad type scent dispenser incorporated into an archery bow stabilizer. In each of these patents, scent dispensing is a secondary function of the device and the simple saturated pad method suffers from the same disadvantages as the dedicated saturated pad scent dispensers discussed previously. More specifically, the disadvantages lie in the reliance on evaporation and diffusion to disperse the scent and the lack of ease of changing scents without exposing the hunter to contact with the scent.
Variations on the saturated pad type of scent dispenser are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 4,802,626 [Forbes, et al.], which patent discloses a scent impregnated plastic material, and U.S. Des. Pat. No. 324,730 [Salter, et al.], which shows an electrically stimulated scent impregnated material. While these devices overcome some of the difficulties in changing scents, they still passively rely on diffusion to disperse the scent and cannot control the rate at which the scent is emitted.
It should be noted that not one of the earlier devices actively disburses an atomized spray of scent into the air. In addition, none of the earlier devices provides for quick and simple changing of the scent being dispensed. In addition, many of the earlier devices are not compact and lightweight for transporting by a hunter to a remote hunting location, and are not adapted to be mounted to an archery bow or other hunting environment venue.
The use of stabilizers in connection with archery bows is known in the art. When an arrow is launched from a bow, the arrow is subjected to a sudden propulsive force, and consequently the bow is subjected to a sudden and equal reactive force transmitted through the bow string. Often, this propulsive force is accompanied by a vertical or lateral torque that may cause the arrow to deviate from its desired flight path. A stabilizer attached to the bow and extending forwardly therefrom will resist the torque which is imparted to the bow when an arrow is launched, and will therefore assist the hunter in keeping the arrow on its desired flight path. The stabilizer may also absorb the shock and vibration occurring when the arrow is launched from the bow.
An example of such stabilizers is found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,245,612 [Finlay], previously cited, which patent discloses an archery bow mounted stabilizer containing a saturated pad type scent dispenser. Disadvantages of this stabilizer design include that it is not easily removable from the bow in the field without tools and that it relies upon a flexible coupling to provide damping of the shock and vibration occurring when an arrow is launched.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a scent dispenser for hunting capable of disbursing scent into the air at the will of the hunter at a rate that is not dependant only upon evaporation and diffusion of a liquid scent. Additionally, it is an object of the present invention to provide a scent dispenser that enables the hunter to refrain from disbursing scent into the air when so desired. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a scent dispenser which is changeable to enable a hunter to disperse multiple scents without being exposed to contamination by the scent and without having to dispose of any previously used parts of the scent dispenser.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a scent dispenser for mounting on an archery bow which serves as a stabilizer to resist the torque and to dampen the shock and vibration imparted to the bow upon launching of an arrow, regardless of the angle at which the bow is held by the hunter. It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a scent dispenser for mounting as a stabilizer on an archery bow that is compact and lightweight for ease of transporting by a hunter to a remote hunting location.
Other objects will appear hereinafter.
The present invention overcomes the disadvantages inherent in the types of hunting scent dispensers which have been previously known and used. Additionally, the present invention functions as an archery bow stabilizer, resulting in a combination of features not found in the prior art. The present invention provides an atomizing scent dispenser capable of being mounted on an archery bow or another mounting surface. The present invention is comprised of both a scent dispensing portion and a mounting portion.
The scent dispensing portion operates in a similar manner to a perfume atomizer. A squeeze bulb mounted to the dispenser body of the dispensing portion may be squeezed by the hunter to direct a pressurized air stream through the dispensing portion towards an atomizer body. The atomizer body serves as an aspirator, drawing liquid scent from an attached scent bottle assembly to mix into the pressurized air stream, with the combined stream of air and liquid scent being forced through an atomizer at the tip of the atomizer body and out into the atmosphere as atomized droplets. The atomizer body is rigidly supported by a cylindrical insert, which is rotatably mounted in a cylindrical cavity in the dispenser body, allowing the atomizer body and the scent bottle assembly to swivel about the dispenser body under the force of gravity so that the liquid filled bottle remains in an upright vertical position. An annular groove and a plurality of internal passages in the cylindrical insert provide a continuous flow path from the squeeze bulb through the dispenser body and through the cylindrical insert to the atomizer body. The cylindrical insert is retained in the cylindrical cavity of the dispenser body by a retaining screw which is threaded to the dispenser body and fits closely into the annular groove in the cylindrical insert. A keyed fixture on the proximal end of the dispenser body enables the dispensing portion to be supported by and secured to the mounting portion.
The mounting portion provides an easily detachable connection between the scent dispensing portion and a mounting surface. The mounting surface may be the handle of an archery bow, the forward extension of a mounted stabilizer, or alternatively, the mounting surface may a rigid member of a hunting stand or another solid object in the vicinity of the hunter. A mounting base is fastened to the bow or the mounting surface, and a mounting lug containing a keyed slot is secured to the mounting base. The keyed slot on the mounting lug receives the keyed fixture on the dispenser body of the scent dispensing portion and secures the keyed fixture in place using a retaining means which, when actuated, seats in a detent in the keyed fixture. The retaining means may be a spring plunger, a thumb screw, or an equivalent means known in the art. The dispensing portion may be readily removed to be exchanged for another essentially identical dispensing portion containing a different liquid scent simply by retracting the retaining mean s and sliding the keyed fixture of the dispensing portion out from the keyed slot of the mounting portion.
In operation, the present invention is designed particularly to disperse a desired amount of a selected scent at the will of a hunter. The hunter can control the amount of scent dispersed by controlling both the amount of air expelled from the squeeze bulb and the force and speed with which the squeeze bulb is actuated. If the squeeze bulb is not actuated, no scent is dispersed as the tiny physical size of the atomizer orifice is too small to allow for any noticeable evaporation of the liquid scent. If the hunter desires to utilize a different scent without changing the dispensing portion of the present invention, the liquid scent filled bottle may be easily replaced with a bottle containing the different liquid scent and the previous scent quickly flushed out of the scent dispenser with a few actuations of the squeeze bulb. If the hunter desires to utilize a different scent without the possibility of being exposed to the liquid scent, the entire dispensing portion can be exchange as previously described.
The present invention is further designed to provide a stabilizer for an archery bow which is additionally capable of damping vibration and shock in the archery bow upon the launching of an arrow therefrom. When mounted to an archery bow, the present invention extends forwardly therefrom, and is capable of providing stabilization of an archery bow held at any orientation with respect to the ground, as the design of the cylindrical insert allows the atomizer body and the scent bottle assembly to rotate under the force of gravity to maintain the liquid filled scent bottle in an upright vertical orientation and to maintain the force of the stabilizer in the downward direction. Also, any motion of the archery bow in response to the launching of an arrow causes a natural damping motion of the scent dispenser that serves to minimize vibration and shock in the archery bow.